THE BEST NONSENSE VERSES ***
Produced by Sigal Alon, Fox in the Stars, Linda Cantoni, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
The Best Nonsense Verses, Chosen by Josephine Dodge Daskam
EVANSTON WILLIAM S. LORD 1902
Copyright 1901 WILLIAM S. LORD
PUBLISHER'S NOTE
The publisher desires to acknowledge the courtesy of authors and publishers in granting permission to reprint the verses contained in this book. To Mr. Guy Wetmore Carryl, whose "Fables for the Frivolous" are published by Messrs. Harper & Brothers; to Mr. Charles E. Carryl, whose verses appeared originally in _St. Nicholas_; to Mr. Oliver Herford, whose "Child's Primer of Natural History" is published by Messrs. Charles Scribner's Sons; to the same author for the selection from "Alphabet of Celebrities," published by Messrs. Small, Maynard & Co.; and Messrs. Harper & Brothers, the publishers of du Maurier's "A Legend of Camelot;" and to Messrs. Little, Brown & Co., who publish an edition of Lear's Nonsense Books.
CONTENTS
Page
Father William Lewis Carroll 7
The Walrus and the Carpenter Lewis Carroll 9
The Hunting of the Snark, Extracts Lewis Carroll 14
Jabberwocky Lewis Carroll 19
The Jumblies Edward Lear 21
The Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo Edward Lear 25
Nonsense Verses Edward Lear 30
Gentle Alice Brown W.S. Gilbert 33
Emily, John, James and I W.S. Gilbert 37
Ellen M'Jones Aberdeen W.S. Gilbert 41
The Sycophantic Fox and the Gullible Raven Guy Wetmore Carryl 45
Red Ridinghood Guy Wetmore Carryl 47
A Nautical Ballad Charles E. Carryl 50
The Plaint of the Camel Charles E. Carryl 52
Child's Natural History Oliver Herford 54
Alphabet of Celebrities Oliver Herford 56
Nonsense Verses Gelett Burgess 57
Vers Nonsensiques George du Maurier 59
Nonsense Verses W.S. Gilbert 60
Varia Anonymous 61
BEST NONSENSE VERSES
FATHER WILLIAM
"You are old, father William," the young man said, "And your hair has become very white: And yet you incessantly stand on your head-- Do you think, at your age, it is right?"
"In my youth," father William replied to his son, "I feared it might injure the brain: But now that I'm perfectly sure I have none, Why, I do it again and again."
"You are old," said the youth, "as I mentioned before, And have grown most uncommonly fat; Yet you turned a back somersault in at the door-- Pray, what is the reason of that?"
"In my youth," said the sage, as he shook his grey locks, "I kept all my limbs very supple By the use of this ointment--one shilling the box-- Allow me to sell you a couple."
"You are old," said the youth, "and your jaws are too weak For anything tougher than suet; Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the beak; Pray, how did you manage to do it?"
